Hebraization of surnames

A letter wirriten by Yechezkel Danin (Sochovolsky) to the Ottoman Authorities in the Land of Israel concerning the Hebraization of his surname, from "Socholovsky" to "Danin" The Hebraization of surnames (also spelled Hebraicization ) ( , Ivrut , "Hebraization") is the process of adopting Hebrew family names (also called surnames or last names ). Many immigrants to modern Israel changed their names to Hebrew names, to erase remnants of galuti (exiled) life still surviving in family names from other languages. This phenomenon was especially common among Ashkenazic Jewish immigrants to Israel, because most of their names were taken later and some were imposed by the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires. Very few Hebrew surnames exist, such as Cohen ('priest') and Levi (one of the tribes of Israel ). Names ending with -berg , -stein or -man are often thought of as Jewish, but are of German origin, while suffixes such as -sky and -vitz are Slavic . Similarly, a few Hebrew surnames, such as Katz , Bogoraz and Pak are in fact Hebrew acronyms , even though they sound and are often perceived as being of foreign origin (in these cases, from German, Russian and Korean , respectively). The Hebraization of surnames is a unique phenomenon to the Hebrew language. This process began as early as the days of the First and Second Aliyot and continued after the establishment of the State of Israel. The widespread trend towards hebraicization of surnames in the days of the Yishuv and immediately after the establishment of the State of Israel was based on the claim that a Hebrew name provided a feeling of belonging to the new state. There was also the wish to distance from the lost and dead past.

A letter written by Yechezkel Danin (Sochovolsky) to the Ottoman Authorities in the Land of Israel concerning the Hebraization of his surname, from "Sochovolsky" to "Danin" The Hebraization of surnames (also spelled Hebraicization ) ( , Ivrut , "Hebraization") is the process of adopting Hebrew family names (also called surnames or last names ). Many immigrants to modern Israel changed their names to Hebrew names, to erase remnants of galuti (exiled, diaspora-like) life still surviving in family names from other languages. This phenomenon was especially common among Ashkenazi Jewish immigrants to Israel, because many such families only acquired permanent surnames (rather than patronyms) when surnames were made compulsory by the November 12, 1787 decree by the Habsburg emperor Joseph II . (In some other countries, many non-Jews likewise went by patronymics until surnames became mandatory, e.g., Holland in 1811. ) By way of contrast, Sephardic Jews from the Iberian peninsula often had hereditary family names since well before the Spanish Expulsion (e.g., Cordovero, Abrabanel, Shaltiel, de Leon, Alcalai, Toledano,...) Very few Hebrew surnames exist, such as Cohen (priest), Moss (Moses) and Levi ( Levite ). Names ending with -berg , -stein or -man are often thought of as Jewish, but are of German origin, while suffixes such as -sky and -vitz are Slavic . Similarly, a few Hebrew surnames, such as Katz , Bogoraz , Uhl and Pak are in fact Hebrew acronyms , even though they sound and are often perceived as being of foreign origin (in these cases, from German, Russian , Polish and Korean , respectively). The Hebraization of surnames is a unique phenomenon to the Hebrew language. This process began as early as the days of the First and Second Aliyot and continued after the establishment of the State of Israel. The widespread trend towards hebraization of surnames in the days of the Yishuv and immediately after the establishment of the State of Israel was based on the claim that a Hebrew name provided a feeling of belonging to the new state. There was also the wish to distance from the lost and dead past, and from the forced imposition of foreign (e.g. German) names in the previous centuries. This process has not ended: among the thousands of Israelis who currently apply for legal name changes each year, many do it to adopt Hebrew names.

Poster offering assistance in choosing a Hebrew name The Hebraization of surnames (also Hebraicization ) ( , Ivrut , "Hebraization") is the act of adopting a Hebrew surname in exchange for a diaspora name . This name-change typically did not apply to Mizrahi Jews who came from neighboring countries such as Iran, Iraq, and Egypt. This phenomenon was especially common among Ashkenazi Jews , because many such families only acquired permanent surnames (rather than patronyms ) when surnames were made compulsory by the November 12, 1787 decree by the Habsburg emperor Joseph II . Sephardi Jews from the Iberian peninsula often had hereditary family names since well before the Spanish Expulsion (e.g., Cordovero, Abrabanel, Shaltiel, de Leon, Alcalai, Toledano, etc.). Very few Hebrew surnames existed before Hebraization, such as Cohen (priest), Moss (Moses) and Levi ( Levite ). Several Hebrew surnames, such as Katz , Bogoraz , Ohl and Pak are in fact Hebrew acronyms , even though they sound and are often perceived as being of non-Jewish origin (in these cases, from German, Russian , Polish and Korean , respectively). Hebraization began as early as the days of the First and Second Aliyot and continued after the establishment of the State of Israel. The widespread trend towards Hebraization of surnames in the days of the Yishuv and immediately after the establishment of the State of Israel was based on the claim that a Hebrew name provided a feeling of belonging to the new state. There was also the wish to distance from the lost and dead past, and from the forced imposition of foreign (e.g. German) names in the previous centuries. This process has not ended: among the thousands of Israelis who currently apply for legal name changes each year, many do it to adopt Hebrew names. A similar phenomenon was observed with Latvian surnames : their de- Germanization as part of the Latvian national movement during the interbellum .

Process in which diaspora Jews adopt Hebrew surnames following their migration to Israel Poster offering assistance in choosing a Hebrew name The Hebraization of surnames (also Hebraicization ) ( , Ivrut , "Hebraization") is the act of adopting a Hebrew surname. The phenomenon was especially common among Ashkenazi Jews , because many such families acquired permanent surnames (rather than patronyms ) only when surnames were made compulsory by the November 12, 1787, decree by Habsburg Emperor Joseph II . Sephardi Jews from the Iberian peninsula often had hereditary family names since well before the expulsion from Spain (e.g., Cordovero, Abrabanel, Shaltiel, de Leon, Alcalai, Toledano, Lopez). Very few Hebrew surnames existed before Hebraization, such as Cohen (priest), Moss (Moses) and Levi ( Levite ). Several Hebrew surnames, such as Katz , Bogoraz , Ohl and Pak are in fact Hebrew acronyms even though they sound and are often perceived as being of non-Jewish origin (in these cases, from German, Russian , Polish and Korean , respectively). Hebraization began as early as the days of the First and Second Aliyot and continued after the establishment of the State of Israel. The widespread trend towards Hebraization of surnames in the days of the Yishuv and immediately after the establishment of the State of Israel was based on the claim that a Hebrew name provided a feeling of belonging to the new state. There was also the wish to distance from the lost and dead past and from the forced imposition of foreign (e.g. German) names in the previous centuries. The process has not ended: among the thousands of Israelis who currently apply for legal name changes each year, many do so to adopt Hebrew names. A similar phenomenon was observed with Latvian surnames , whose de- Germanization was part of the Latvian national movement during the interbellum .